Take Note pre-concert talk at 7:00 p.m. with Patrick Reynolds in the Mead Theatre
COPLAND Appalachian Spring Suite
MOZART Piano Concerto No. 21
BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 6, “Pastoral”
NEAL GITTLEMAN conductor
GAVIN GEORGE piano
DAYTON PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA
HERBERT MARTIN poet
If ever you’ve longed for a concert to refresh your spirit, calm your soul, and envelop you with a peaceful glow, this evening grants your wish. Copland’s ballet Appalachian Spring (composed for legendary dancer Martha Graham) is quintessentially American—full of vitality, hope, and belief in the future, as a young pioneer couple starts to build their dream together. Listen for dance and fiddle tunes, and, of course, the beloved Shaker hymn-inspired “Simple Gifts.”
Young prodigy Gavin George returns to the Dayton Philharmonic for Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 21 (the soundtrack of Elvira Madigan is probably sounding in your ears right now!). Biographer Maynard Solomon memorably described the work’s slow movement: “Mozart essays an entire movement of unrelieved, time-stopping beauty…sustaining a line of overarching beauty until the distant double-bar, which is to say, for something just short of eternity.”
And finally, step into the landscape Beethoven has painted with music. His “Pastoral” Symphony depicts all manner of birds, a babbling brook, and a terrifying storm. But before long, tranquility is restored, and—surprise!—“The Mighty Thunderer” shows us his softer side.
In between movements of Beethoven’s beautiful work, poet Herbert Martin will perform a poem he wrote specifically for this symphony entitled “After: The Pastoral.” Martin is Professor Emeritus in English at the University of Dayton and a prize-winning poet and performer, specializing in the work of Paul Lawrence Dunbar.
Louis S. Cantor, Rose Sorokin Cantor, Samuel L. Cantor, and Lena Cantor Endowed Guest Artist | Gavin George, piano soloist
Benjamin & Marian Schuster Endowed Young Classical Artist | Gavin George, pianist
Dayton Philharmonic Volunteer Association – Masterworks Series Sponsor
DP&L Foundation – DPAA Innovation Partner – Powering Innovation in the Performing Arts
Marriott University of Dayton Official Hotel of the Dayton Philharmonic
Bob Ross Auto Group Official Automobile Dealership of the Dayton Philharmonic
Dayton Aerospace, Inc. Military Appreciation Presenting Sponsor
Generous Annual Support
